Because I travel so much, I watch the Weather Channel, or something like it, a lot. I just sat back, this one time, in amazement as I watched them track this monster low pressure system moving across the country. By the time it reached the Eastern United States, that low pressure system stretched on the Weather Channel map from the Maritime Provinces in Canada all the way to Mexico! I mean, it was massive! And everywhere it went, it left flooding rains or heavy snows or even violent weather. In Minnesota, for example, this low pressure system registered the lowest barometric pressure ever. All across the eastern half of the country, the news reported massive power outages, cancellations, delays. For millions of Americans, whatever they had planned just didn't happen.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "What God's Saying In Your Storm."
One thing a night like that turbulent weather night demonstrates is this: God can change your plans anytime. And He may be bringing some weather into your life right now to do just that.
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Psalm 148 beginning at verse 1. It's a Psalm that reaches across the universe to celebrate the scope of God's power and control, and to remind us of the size of the God we belong to. "Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord from the heavens, praise Him in the heights above. Praise Him, all His angels, praise Him, all His heavenly hosts. Praise Him, sun and moon, praise Him all you shining stars... Praise the Lord from the earth, you great sea creatures and all ocean depths, lightning and hail, snow and clouds..." And then this phrase that just leaped out at me, "Praise the Lord...stormy winds that do His bidding."
Obviously, this refers to the physical storms that blow through our lives, but I believe it's true of all the stormy winds that hit us: medical storms, financial storms, emotional storms, all those "turbulences" that take things out of our control. They are "stormy winds that do His bidding."
If you're feeling some of those stormy winds right now, remember that God is asserting His sovereignty over your life, and your plans, your priorities, and your timing. He is in charge - and sometimes we forget. But as His stormy winds move across the weather map of our lives, we can remember again that "our times are in His hands." If it's stormy right now, consider what He might be trying to say to you. As Solomon tells us, "When times are good, be happy; when times are bad, consider..." (Ecclesiastes 7:14).
Is God trying to slow you down? Does He want you to reconsider? Is He trying to get you to change course? Is He trying to get your attention because you've been ignoring something He's trying to say to you or something He's trying to do in your life? Don't just stand there frustrated because His weather has messed up your plans. Don't fight what He's trying to do. Listen for God in this storm!
It's hard to be a follower of Jesus when you're a rigid person. Following someone requires flexibility because you never know when your leader is going to speed up, slow down, make a turn, or change direction. Actually, flexibility is fundamental to being able to follow the dynamic leadership of Jesus Christ. And the storm is a lot more bearable when you go with His flow rather than flying stubbornly against it.
The stormy wind blowing in your life right now is doing God's bidding. Make sure that you are.